Hello there.

Here's the next chapter. Dedicated to Revriley for both sucking-up and for ordering me to add something new. But of course, she'll never know what worked in order to get this chapter up--sycophantic tendencies or blatant need for control and power. So hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha to you, Rev. :P Enjoy.

DISCLAIMER: Because of SASDGAC, I no longer wish to own anything SD. Sad, but true. Wah.

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Chapter Four:

Memories: No Turning Back

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Adriattacai Maledire watched like a hawk from the balcony of the staircase as his two year-old son tottered after the family's new puppy on the vast ocean of dark blue carpet, laughing gleefully as she escaped him once again. Shadow was a blessing to him, truthfully he was-- he was a son that he could be proud of. Already he was showing signs of being exceptionally strong and fit, and yet his childish innocence could make anyone smile. And while his name was strange, he was everything that Adriattacai could hope for.

In truth, the man had everything one could only dream of having-- a beautiful loving wife, a sweet-tempered and healthy child, riches beyond his wildest dreams, immortality... power... All made possible by him.

The FallenMaster.

And the price for all of this seemed almost trivial--for what good does a soul do anyone? And yet, there were times when he wondered if he had made the right choice, if everything he had, all of this, was worth it.

Of course it is! a voice in his head spoke up. You get everything a person could desire, and all you have to do is take a few people in death and blood here and there every night. It's because of Master Lucifer that you have anything at all in your life. Besides, the voice drawled, haven't you enjoyed the power that the shadows have given you? The control, the fury, everything... it is possible because of us. And us alone. Be grateful, Master Maledire. Be grateful, for the shadows can be kind... or they can be cruel. It is your choice; and yours alone.

He smiled as he thought of the look on the chosen victim's faces as he struck them, his face twisting into a grimacing, evil smirk. He had grown to love the feel of the thick, crimson liquid as it sprayed and smattered everywhere, and the more often he killed for him, the more he grew to desire the pounding thrill that the hunt brought, the sheer force and power, the graceful fluidity of the darkness as it intertwined within his mind. His heart was now a blackened, shriveled thing; and yet he found he didn't care. So long as his darling Sara, his son Shadow, his wealth and home, were protected, and kept in the finest of everything one could offer them, it was fine.

As long as it was all for them.

He was startled out of his thoughts as a door opened downstairs, and his lovely wife graced the room with her sweet and humble presence. She looked up at him and smiled, as she pulled her honey brown hair away from her heart-shaped face, her mismatched eyes shining brightly up at him. That was what he'd always adored about her the most: her strange looking eyes, one a rich chocolate brown, the other a beautiful vivid gold-and-blue mixture. Their son had inherited a combination of her two eyes, giving him golden brown eyes, with an almost indistinguishable ring of cerulean blue around the pupil. Those same eyes watched his mother adoringly as she scooped him up in her arms, despite his moan of protest of being pulled away from their sweet, midnight black puppy Sasha. The dear little child had named her himself, after having discovered her shivering about on the doorstep in the rain. In reality, 'Sasha' was really a new tool, a new minion for Adriattacai to use in his hunts. The sweet little dear seemed to love swiping her tiny claws across someone's jugular, and licking up what came gushing out in great streams. This bloodlust seemed to personify her when she hunted with him at night. Maybe later he could get her name changed to something that meant exactly that... maybe something Italian... he didn't know yet. But it had to fit that of a Hellhound, of course; especially for the Bloodbeast breed.

There was, of course, the questionable matter of the creature's bond with his son. It seemed to have formed a rather strange alliance with his young son, at almost the moment they'd locked eyes; and it would do almost anything that the boy asked or implied it to do. He could only hope at this point that, with time and sufficient bloodshed, it would wear off, but he was still rather uneasy about the entire thing. But perhaps, he mused, that his son was the only reason why the puppy hadn't already evolved into a full-fledged adult; it was kept young by the innocence his own child held within his still-pure heart. He supposed that it was a good thing though. Sara would've gotten suspicious had the puppy grown too fast. He wouldn't have to tell her about the deal he'd made to keep them immortal forever. Not yet, anyways...

Tell her...

...the voices whispered in his ear, ever so enticingly. Tell her, and she will forever be in your debt, bowing at your feet. She will truly be yours; just take the final step and make her so. Make her yours...

But would she really do so? he thought, as she carried their now sweetly-dreaming son up the stairs, towards him, still singing that same sweet lullaby into his ears. She's so innocent, so pure, so good to me, a monster now. I am no longer truly a man, not what she fell in love with. How can I tell her of what I have done?

Simple. Just open your mouth, use those things in your throat called vocal chords, and force out what we call sound to make words. Besides, the voices hissed slyly, this will only make her desire you more. She will give you all she has to offer, she will let you take what has always been yours by right whenever you shall please. You shall have TRUE power over all that you hold dear. And the shadows shall entwine your souls together so that you will never have to let her go. Never...

But what of the boy?

He will be far easier to win over. Simply show him a little attention and encouragement and he will be loyal to you until the day the world shall perish forever in our Master's brilliant burning flames.

And the power would be mine? The darkness would be mine to control?

Forever... it would be yours to rule over for all of eternity.

Forever...

"Adrian? Are you alright, my love? You look a little pale."

Adriattacai was woken from his thoughts as his darling Sara approached him, their sleeping son resting quietly in her arms, his thumb in his mouth. She really was so beautiful... and soon she would be his eternal queen of night, a Persephone to his Hades. That analogy was more accurate then it seemed to be, he mused amusingly. A smile played lightly on his handsome face, as he turned to his lovely bride, and placed a kiss on her rose petal lips.

"I am fine, my love. I am just thinking about the future, and what it will hold for us. The year will be ending soon, you know, and there is much left to be discussed and arranged."

She smiled, as she shifted their child in her arms. "Mm, you think too much, my darling. 'Tis only another year, that will lead to our unfortunate demise. Besides," she said, "why worry so much? Why not just enjoy what we have? 1846 is a wonderful time to live in, after all. So civilized, so... controlled." She smirked. "But entirely too proper, so I say." And she leaned in and gave her husband a loving kiss.

It was then that he made up his mind. Tonight, he thought, I'll tell her.

Tonight, they said, she will be made yours forever.

As they pulled away, he smiled at her lovingly. "Darling, why don't you put Shadow down to bed? I have some business I need to conduct in my study, and I'll be finished soon enough. Will you be alright until then?"

"Of course, my love. I will always be especially fine with you in my life." At this, his smile grew a little wider. And a little more disconcerting.

"That's wonderful to hear, my dear. Now, I shall return to you in a moment. Excuse me." And at that, he turned on his heel, and headed down a long, narrow hallway, leaving her far behind him.

"Ombra!" He called out, his deep and booming voice echoed out. A smaller, weaker man, who appeared to be about 50 or so, twice the age of Adriattacai, seemed to slink off of the walls, a tired, weather-worn look about him, as if he were tired of living, yet unable to die. As it was, this was entirely true for him; for he also was bound for eternity with the promise of immortality. However, he had not had the potential that the young Master Maledire had for darkness, for death and destruction. So he had been shoved aside, waiting to become a slave for the next new Master of whatever evil still existed out there in the world, and to do all that he could for his young daughter, to protect her as best as he possibly could from the cruelties of the world. And that protection--unfortunately--had come in the form of the young and handsome man who called upon him now.

"Master Maledire, I do wish that you wouldn't call on me in such a way. I do have some semblance of a life, you know." At this, the younger man shot him a look of cold annoyance from his harsh, silver-blue eyes, making him shrink against the side of the wall.

"Be aware of who is in control here, Scoretto. Be aware of who has the power amongst the two of us!" The shadows began to swirl angrily about his form, as his eyes turned to a bloodlust black; and the demons once again took hold. The entire hall began to darken and quake, and several paintings that hung on the wall fell to the soft, carpeted floor before he calmed down sufficiently enough to allow the lights to reappear. He cleared his throat, and looked down his nose upon the weak and trembling man who'd fallen to his knees, all the while motioning for the shadows to replace the fallen portraits. "Forgive me for that little outburst, Ombra. It was rather rude of me. Now, I need you to keep guard at the door of my study for a few hours. I'm going out. I have a meeting with our FallenMaster to discuss a few things. All right?"

The man before him could only nod in agreement; for he had never seen the demons descend upon a single person so fast, nor come to his power so quickly. He could only hope that what was fast consuming the man would not consume his family; otherwise everything he had 'worked' for, as it were, would crumble about him into dust before his very eyes. And so he slunk back into the wall, to guard the hallways and to watch over the family of the demon that now resided in what was once his own home, knowing for a fact that everything was going to end very soon. Very soon indeed.

Adriattacai watched him disappear into the shadows that slunk across the walls for a while, seemingly mesmerized by the swirling, endless pattern they wove across the wallpaper, before turning away and striding towards his study, which was shrouded in the twisting darkness. He looked back upon his former life, knowing that after tonight, things would never truly have a chance to be the same.

Sara... she will not lo--

She will...

But how can you be sure? He asked them. For a moment, they seemed to pausing in their acrobatics, before pulling away sharply to reveal a set of purest obsidian stone doors, as polished as marble, and engraved with many a heathen sign. Then they answered him, in an increasingly seductive hiss:

We are the shadows of the world. We know all, we see all. She will be yours when this is over. You will control everything around you.

Everything will be yours. And she will be by your side in darkness... forever.

Forever?

Forever.

Adriattacai stared at the doors before him for what seemed the longest time, deep in his ever-darkening thoughts. The darkness began to grow impatient, as they wove themselves in and out between his legs, waiting for an answer. And then, finally, he made his choice.

He wrapped his hand around the elegantly carved handle of the door, pulling it open and slipping inside, as the shadows embraced him in a cloak of inky blackness. His eyes clouded over briefly, as he relished in the raw and naked power that opened its arms to him. His eyes now glowed like icy steel frosted over in ice, surrounded in a sea of ebony.

The doors closed behind them, now reverting back to their original state of a simple pair of cedar and oak.

And it was then that he knew:

There truly was no turning back now.

Damn, even I'm creeped out by the creepiness of my own writing. Review and tell me what you think. Or I'll set Sasha after you.